Another Hostile Bid Flops In Japan

An unusually heated takeover battle between two Japanese golf-course operators came to an all too common ending: a rebuff by shareholders against a hostile bid.

In mid-November, PGM Holdings K.K. launched a 42.5 billion yen (US $472 million) unsolicited offer to buy up to 50.1% of Japan’s No. 1 golf-course operator Accordia Golf Co. directly from shareholders. But on Friday, PGM said its bid failed since it received offers from Accordia shareholders to sell only 174,580 shares, short of the minimum target of 209,224 shares, or 20% of Accordia’s voting rights.